Small bites: Asheville Restaurant Week returns

A WEEK ON THE TOWN: Asheville Restaurant Week runs Monday-Sunday, Jan. 21-27, with special deals offered at over 30 local eateries. Photo courtesy of Chestnut

The Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce will kick off its seventh annual Asheville Restaurant Week on Thursday, Jan. 17, with a launch party at the Salvage Station. The event will feature live music by The Northside Gentlemen and plenty of samples from some of the week’s participating restaurants, including French Broad Chocolate Lounge, Red Stag Grill, Rhubarb, Hemingway’s Cuba Restaurant & Bar, Isa’s Bistro, Haywood Common, AUX Bar and Cucina 24. In addition to bites, the $15 admission comes with a complimentary beer.

This year’s weeklong event, which officially begins Monday, Jan. 21, seeks “to highlight restaurants during what has typically been a slower season in our area,” says Amy Jackson, director of engagement at the chamber. “We want to make sure locals have the opportunity to patronize some of our restaurants at a unique price point when there aren’t so many visitors here.”

Over 30 local restaurants have signed on, with specials varying from location to location. Highlights include a two-course $15 lunch and three-course $30 dinner at AUX Bar, a two-course dinner at Chestnut for $28, two entrees for $20 at Early Girl Eatery, a three-course-$30 meal at Haywood Common and a wood-fired pizza and beer flight for $12 at White Labs Kitchen & Tap.

Along with trying new venues (or visiting old favorites), Jackson says Asheville Restaurant Week is a great chance for residents to participate in and support Asheville’s local economy.

Science Pub series

The Asheville Museum of Science has partnered with The Collider, an innovation center for climate solutions, for its sixth annual Science Pub series. Elizabeth Porter, UNC Asheville professor of economics, will help launch this year’s inaugural event with her talk The World Food Challenge: Crisis or Opportunity? Ingles will provide light appetizers; Wicked Weed Brewing will provide beer. Admission is free.

Vinegar medicines workshop

The Wander School’s Abby Artemisia and Becky Beyer of Blood and Spicebush will host a workshop that explores “remedies and recipes for vinegar tonics, sippable shrubs and Appalachian folk medicines,” according to the event’s Facebook page. Participants will forage ingredients for their vinegar-based medicines and will leave with their own handmade herbal vinegar tonic.

Healthy Vegan Party Food class

Edible Musings Kitchen in South Asheville welcomes 2019 — and prepares for Super Bowl Sunday — with a new cooking class focused on making vegan party food. Participants will learn to make barbecue cauliflower bites, crabby jackfruit dip and crispy mashed potato balls. Space is limited.

Healthy Vegan Party Food runs 2-4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 19. The address, which is in South Asheville, will be disclosed upon registration. Tickets are $25. Payment can be sent via Paypal to lvaught702@gmail.com. For details, visit ediblemusings.com.

History of Tea course

Dobra Tea West Asheville will offer a class on the history of tea on Sunday, Jan. 20. According to the event’s Facebook page, camellia sinesis, an evergreen shrub native to Southeast Asia, was first discovered 4,500 years ago in China. Since that time, the course description reads, “nations all over the world have developed their own unique tea culture and methods of production.” The class will explore these various practices and cultivations of the ancient plant.

The History of Tea runs 9-11 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 20, at Dobra Tea West Asheville, 707 Haywood Road. Tickets are $20. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit avl.mx/5k5.

The dinner runs 6-9:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 22, at Chestnut, 48 Biltmore Ave. Tickets are $125 per person, including tax and gratuity. For more information and tickets, visit avl.mx/5k6.

Wild Game beer dinner

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. will host Wild Game, a beer dinner, on Wednesday, Jan. 23. Guests will have the chance to sample a variety of beers with seasonal meats, and members of Sierra Nevada’s brewing and culinary teams will be available to answer questions about the meal.

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About Thomas Calder

Thomas Calder received his MFA in Fiction from the University of Houston's Creative Writing Program. He has worked with several publications, including Gulf Coast and the Collagist.

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